The Toad and the Spider(Emblem 23)

How is a poisonous toad like a jousting knight? Not much, one might think; but by the end of Pulter’s poem, both are rendered emblematic of the false trust people put in “worldly vanities.” The poem accomplishes this analogy through a roundabout account likening a conflict between two lowly creatures to the type of embroilment more typical of courtly gallants. But as well as critiquing those who pick their battles poorly, Pulter points a finger at the fans of such fights: while the toad and spider, like the poem’s carpet knight, might seem to duke it out in “single duel,” an entire “multitude” eggs on the beasts in this fable, just as a fickle lady-love contributes to the jouster’s fall from grace. In Pulter’s Poem 7, a Hydra-headed multitude is lambasted for fomenting England’s civil wars, while high-ranking individuals are ennobled for their role in the same; here, in contrast, Pulter levels the battlefield, suggesting war’s futility for all, herself included (as the concluding couplet shows).

Editorial Note

The aim of the elemental edition is to make the poems accessible to the largest variety of readers, which involves modernizing spelling and punctuation as well as adding basic glosses. Spelling and punctuation reflect current standard American usage; punctuation highlights syntax which might otherwise be obscure. Outmoded but still familiar word forms (“thou,” “‘tis,” “hold’st”) are not modernized, and we do not modernize grammar when the sense remains legible.

After a brief headnote aimed at offering a “way in” to the poem’s unique qualities and connections with other verse by Pulter or her contemporaries, the edition features a minimum of notes and interpretative framing to allow more immediate engagement with the poem. Glosses clarify synonyms or showcase various possible meanings in Pulter’s time. Other notes identify named people and places or clarify obscure material. We rely (without citation) primarily on the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), the Oxford Reference database, and the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible. When we rely on Alice Eardley’s edition of Pulter’s work, we cite her text generally (“Eardley”); other sources are cited in full. The result is an edition we consider a springboard for further work on Pulter’s poetry.

lists were drawn

the “lists” (barriers enclosing a space set apart for a tilting match, joust, or tournament) were established; here, the terms for the contest.

compose

settle the dispute

gallant

gentleman

impeached

accused

giving him the lie

directly accusing a person of lying

try

test; put to a trial

Mowbray, some for Bollingbroke

In the fourteenth century, Thomas Mowbray (duke of Norfolk) and Henry Bolingbroke (king of England) famously prepared to joust until King Richard intervened; here, their conflict is a symbol of divided loyalties.

plaintain

healing herb

They took the plaintain up; then straight he died

The onlookers deprive the toad of his enlivening herb; this narrative is recounted in multiple sources, including Thomas Lupton’s A Thousand Notable Things (London, 1579), 141-2.

’fore

before

foiled

thwarted

a favor to her carpet knight

a token of affection given to her “carpet knight” (a contemptuous term for someone whose achievements belong to a lady’s chamber instead of the field)

in the vein

inclined; in a good mood for something

supplications

pleas

gallant

gentleman

repose

lean

subsolary

earthly

toys

trivial things

High pigeon houses up of cards will raise

They build a tall structure out of flimsy materials; pigeon houses are composed of small cubicles that resemble the structure of a house of cards.

Curations offer an array of verbal and visual materials that invite contemplation of different ways in which a particular poem might be contextualized. Sources, analogues, and glimpses into earlier or subsequent cultural phenomena all might play into possible readings of a given poem. Don't show again